Le Drugstore — Paris, France

Stumble into Le Drugstore after a few Martinis and you’ll wonder if, when you walked through its doors, you didn’t also step back to the early 1960s, so period-perfect is the interior.
A Parisian staple since 1958, the sprawling Drugstore Publicis sits at the Place de l’Étoile end of the Champs-Élysées and was the brainchild of Publicis founder, Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, who drew inspiration from similar venues he frequented as a young Madison Avenue advertising executive. Restaurant, shop, cinema and bar, it was Paris’ first all-hours venue.
This makeover is not Le Drugstore’s first but it is truer to the building’s original spirit than Michele Saee’s bold but frigid Gehry-esque intervention of 2004. Thanks go to Tom Dixon, whose graceful re-interpretation reveals the more interesting aspects of architect Pierre Dufau’s original design and whose use of rich, tactile materials and clever juxtaposition of glossy wood and marble with soft leather, velvet and brushed brass lends the restaurant its Don Draper appeal.
The menu is the work of Eric Fréchon, the triple-starred chef of Épicure at Le Bristol and offers everything from finger-foods to main meals, with counter service at the bar and the open kitchen for those requiring entertainment.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
133 Avenue des Champs-Elysées
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Middle East Editor
-
This Brooklyn townhouse renovation nails ‘classic’ without cliché
Interior design firm White Arrow transformed a Boerum Hill home into a space that feels historic, contemporary, and just unexpected enough to keep things interesting
-
Home again: the artists reframing the domestic world
The humble home has fascinated artists for hundreds of years. But what, exactly, is the appeal? Artists including Andrew Cranston, Cece Philips and Do Ho Suh on magic in the mundane
-
When did we stop dreaming of a better future? A new book presents four hopeful scenarios
In her debut book, ‘Designing Hope’, Sarah Housley explores how design might help create more equitable, inclusive and radically liveable futures
-
Les Domaines de Chabran redefines the Provençal summer house
Architect Alain Meylan and interior designer Liliana Atilova bring contemporary finesse to centuries-old country houses in southern France. Discover their latest
-
At La Fondation hotel in Paris, minimalism has irresistible warmth
Once a parking lot, this 17th-arrondissement stay now offers rooftop city views, cocooning suites, and interiors by Roman and Williams
-
Sip in style at 30,000 feet with Air France’s new premier cocktail collection
The airline partners with mixologist Matthias Giroud on three new signature cocktails for its La Première customers – here’s to a modern negroni, or a spicy non-alcoholic tipple
-
Discover Philippe Starck’s most surreal hotel yet
At Maison Heler Metz, brutalism meets bedtime story, with a 19th-century home perched on a concrete tower and a fictional host guiding the way
-
Locke unveils its most theatrical aparthotel yet in Paris
Design studio Fettle creates a layered and light-filled escape for the hospitality brand’s first Paris outpost, Le Jardin de Verre by Locke
-
The most stylish hotel takeovers to pop up at this summer
From Capri to Ibiza, luxury fashion brands are taking over seaside resorts with exclusive boutique pop-ups and bespoke poolside accessories
-
Tour Eurostar’s sleek new lounges in Paris and Brussels
London-based Chris Bagot Architects has designed a stylish environment in which to work or unwind prior to high-speed rail travel
-
Taste a Louis Vuitton summer in sun-drenched Saint-Tropez
The Arnaud Donckele & Maxime Frédéric at Louis Vuitton restaurant returns to the White 1921 Saint-Tropez hotel for its third edition, now with a Michelin star